News and Events

North Charleston’s Bernard Samuel, who has helped his high school basketball team reach the Class AA state championship game, heads up a list of six local players named to the South team for the annual North-South All-Star game March 17 at North Myrtle Beach High School.

There will be blood.

"Yeah, my son broke his nose in two places this year," said Dwight Huthwaite, the father of Wando High School rugby player Sam Huthwaite, 14. "But that wasn't as bad as his torn medial collateral ligament."

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We at The Citadel applaud the efforts of Charleston Southern University to increase the number of its students who graduate ("CSU works to boost grad rate") and recognize the service provided by the article in noting graduation rates of colleges throughout South Carolina.

CHARLESTON, SC -The Citadel's Mike Groselle earned second team all-conference accolades from members of the Southern Conference Sports Media Association on Wednesday.

College of Charleston's Antwaine Wiggins and Trent Wiedeman and The Citadel's Mike Groselle were named to the coaches' All-Southern Conference basketball team Tuesday.

First say "oyster."

Then say "Charleston."

Add the word "restaurant," and the response from locals and not a few Citadel cadets will be "Bowen's Island."

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COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - The president of South Carolina's Hospitality Association killed himself in the parking garage of his office building, a coroner said Tuesday, and officials said the man's co-workers found a note referring to a federal investigation into the association's finances.

The Citadel's Mike Groselle earned all-conference honors from the Southern Conference on Tuesday following a balloting of the league's head coaches.

There is potential for the 2012 PGA Championship. Oh, for a Tiger-Phil fight to the finish at Kiawah Island's Ocean Course, high-stakes golf likely to send TV ratings into orbit.

Softball

College of Charleston junior right handed pitcher Stephanie Saylors earned Southern Conference Pitcher of the Week honors the league annoucned Monday afternoon.

COLUMBIA -- North Charleston's "Fab Four" basketball players were noticeably absent Monday at the High School League news conference to promote this weekend's state championship games.

MOUNT PLEASANT — While students worked in class, one Wando High School teacher watched an R-rated movie.

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Diane Gilruth was an amazing tennis player. She won a national collegiate singles title for the College of Charleston.

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Logan Cribb tossed six scoreless innings with five strikeouts to lead The Citadel to a 3-2 victory over visiting Delaware Sunday afternoon at Riley Park. The Bulldogs won the final two games of the four-game series and take a 3-4 record into another four-game set with Columbia starting Thursday at 5:00 p.m.

No. 29 College of Charleston won the final game of the Cougar Invitational, 4-1, over Xavier after a strong pitching outing from junior Matt Pegler. 

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Despite seven lead changes and five ties in a heated-rivalry rematch, College of Charleston was able to hold on to a 55-47 victory over crosstown rival The Citadel in both team's final regular-season finale held Saturday afternoon at McAlister Field House. 

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Delaware scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth inning to come away with a victory over The Citadel in Game 1 of the four-game series at Riley Park.  The Citadel (1-3) faces Delaware (1-3) again at 1 p.m. today. The game was originally set for 5 p.m.

Delaware's Eric Young tossed eight shutout innings, allowing only three base hits, as the Blue Hens defeated The Citadel 5-0 Friday afternoon at Riley Park. The two teams play game three of their four-game series Saturday afternoon at 12:00 p.m.

Multiple law enforcement officials have confirmed an ongoing federal investigation concerning missing money at the S.C. Hospitality Association.  The officials described the amount of money as “substantial” – more than $100,000 and possibly up to $900,000.  The officials told The State newspaper that the association’s accounting director, Rachel Duncan, is a person of interest in the missing money investigation. She has not been charged in the case. The officials declined to talk on the record because they are not authorized to speak about an investigation that has not been made public.

COLUMBIA — Police are hoping that tips that continue to stream in will yield information about a missing South Carolina executive.  Spokeswoman Jennifer Timmons said Friday that officers have combed the office building where Tom Sponseller was last seen. They’ve also gone through the 61-year-old’s cell phone and bank records but have found no clues about where he is.

The Citadel's Odie Delaney was named the Southern Conference wrestler of the week for all competitions from Feb. 15-21. 
Delaney went 3-0 with a pair of pins in three dual matches. Delaney closed the Southern Conference regular season slate with a pin against Campbell's Joe Nolan at 4:22 that clinched the win.

Charleston's win locked the Cougars into the fourth-place seed in the South Division for the Southern Conference Tournament which will be played March 2-5 in Asheville. Charleston closes out the season at 3 p.m. Saturday at The Citadel.

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The Bulldogs call it "war drill," when the coaches put players in the lane and throw the basketball off the rim with one simple command: "Go get it."  "They are intense, man, they are intense," Citadel coach Chuck Driesell said after a 62-51 victory over Appalachian State on Wednesday night at McAlister Field House. "There are going to be collisions, there is going to be contact. You see who wants the ball the most."

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The Citadel is denying a lawsuit's claims that the military college was negligent in failing to report a former camper's allegations of sexual misconduct by admitted child molester Louis "Skip" ReVille.  The lawsuit centers around the school's failure to notify police of a 2007 complaint that accused ReVille of showing young boys porn and masturbating with them at The Citadel in 2002.

A 2004 graduate of The Citadel was one of four Air Force officers killed Saturday in plane crash in East Africa.

The following cadets and active duty military students were named to The Citadel Dean's List for academic work completed during the fall 2011 semester.  To make the list, students must have a grade point ratio is 3.2 or higher:

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - Family, close friends, and colleagues of a missing hospitality executive gathered at the State House Wednesday night to pray for the man's safe return home.

When neighbors come together, wonderful things can happen.  In the Hampton Park Terrace Historic District, a centennial of the neighborhood is being planned for 1 p.m. March 11 at Allan Park. For the South Carolina Inter-State and West Indian   The Citadel Pipe Band will play, Charleston Mayor Joe Riley will speak and there will be a parade -- all to celebrate 100 years of the neighborhood.

Delaware scored the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the ninth to come away with a 3-2 victory over The Citadel in game one of the four-game series Thursday evening at Riley Park. The loss drops The Citadel to 1-3 on the season and the two teams will play tomorrow at 1:00 p.m. The game was originally scheduled for 5:00 p.m.

The Citadel baseball family lost two members last weekend with the passing of former player Chance Smith and Hall of Fame coach Mack Erwin.

The Citadel basketball team snapped an 11-game losing streak by slowing things down last Saturday night in Chattanooga. Odds are, the Bulldogs will try the same strategy as they try to win two in a row for the first time this season tonight against Appalachian State at McAlister Field House.

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The Citadel is denying a lawsuit's claims that the military college was negligent in failing to report a former camper's allegations of sexual misconduct by admitted child molester Louis "Skip" ReVille. The lawsuit centers around the school's failure to notify police of a 2007 complaint that accused ReVille of showing young boys porn and masturbating with them at The Citadel in 2002.

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Citadel baseball players and coaches took time out this week to write their names on a Bulldogs jersey bearing the No. 6. 
That's the number worn by Chance Smith, a former Citadel player who died in a car accident over the weekend in Atlanta. 
The Citadel baseball program also is mourning the death of former coach Malcolm "Mack" Erwin, who died on Saturday at the age of 86.

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Citadel graduate Ryan Hall's military career took him into the secretive world of intelligence-gathering in the war on terror. On Saturday, it also took his life.  Hall, 30, is one of four Air Force personnel killed in a plane crash in the Horn of Africa, falling some 6 miles short of Djibouti International Airport. Citadel graduate Ryan Hall is the school’s 16th alumnus whose death can be linked to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Redshirt junior Bo Holston recorded his first career double-double, 13 points and 10 rebounds, to guide The Citadel to a 62-51 victory over Appalachian State at McAlister Field House. Holston was the catalyst to a Bulldog offense that witnessed three double figure scorers, including Mike Groselle (18 points) and C.J. Bray (10 points). The Citadel has now earned back-to-back Southern Conference victories for the first time since last season, when they downed Western Carolina and Davidson in late January.

COLUMBIA -- South Carolina senators are praying for the safe return of a long-time lobbyist who is missing.  Sen. Joel Lourie of Columbia called on senators Tuesday to hold a moment of silence for Tom Sponseller, president and chief executive of the state Hospitality Association. Sponseller is well known at the Statehouse for representing the tourism industry.

Capt. Ryan Preston Hall, a 2004 Citadel graduate, was among four Air Force officers killed Feb. 18 while in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.  Hall, 30, was a U-28A utility pilot on his seventh deployment overseas when the aircraft crashed near Camp Lemonnier in the East African nation of Djibouti. According to media reports and information from the Department of Defense and the U.S. Africa Command, the aircraft went down during a routine intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance mission for the war in Afghanistan at about 8 p.m. Saturday, local time.

The Citadel is seeking dismissal of a lawsuit based on its failure to report a sex abuse complaint to law enforcement more than four years ago.

The Citadel wants a judge to toss out a lawsuit that alleges a young boy was sexually abused because the military college never told police about an abuse complaint concerning one of its former camp counselors.  The college received a 2007 complaint from a camper who alleged he had been molested by Louis "Skip" ReVille, a counselor at the school's summer camp almost a decade ago. While the college did an internal investigation, it never reported ReVille to police.

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The Citadel wrestling team split a pair of dual matches Sunday at McAlister Field House to close out the regular season, falling 26-12 to North Carolina and routing Sacred Heart 41-3.

The mystery of a missing, high-profile lobbyist entered its fourth day Tuesday as concern over his well-being grew throughout the state.  Columbia police clamped down on information about their search for Tom Sponseller, president of the S.C. Hospitality Association, who disappeared Saturday afternoon.

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COLUMBIA — Columbia police are asking the public to help in a search for a missing executive.

After The Citadel's losing streak reached 11 games on Thursday at Western Carolina, Bulldogs coach Chuck Driesell said it was "gut check" time for his basketball team.

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Liberty scored seven runs in the ninth inning to rally for an 11-9 victory over The Citadel baseball team today in the final game of The Citadel Memorial Challenge at Riley Park.

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Beech Hill Elementary fourth-grader Cody Rogers loves to build stuff, so he was in heaven at Saturday’s “Storm The Citadel” Trebuchet Competition.

 Should Black History Month be ended? That's the question explored by African-American filmmaker Shukree Hassan Tilghman as he embarks on a cross-country campaign to do just that. Amusing and thought-provoking, "More Than a Month" examines what the treatment of history tells us about race and power in America. Dr. Marcus Cox, The Citadel African-American studies program director and professor of the civil rights movement and African-American history, will lead a discussion.

Nick Orvin and Tyler Griffin each recorded three hits as The Citadel scored 10 runs in the first four innings before holding on for a 10-7 college baseball victory over Richmond on Saturday afternoon.

Dalton Sype's three-run triple in the top of the ninth sparked a seven-run outburst as Liberty University rallied from a 9-4 deficit to defeat The Citadel Sunday afternoon at Riley Park in The Citadel Memorial Challenge. The Bulldogs fall to 1-2 on the season and host Delaware in a four-game series beginning Thursday night at 6 p.m.

 I feel like I bring some speed and power and (experience) having already been in a program for four years down at The Citadel. I just try to work hard and hustle. I just try to keep to myself and my own business. I talk to guys but I don't try to be real loud. I just try to lead by example."

Sandra Rabon's working life, like that of her older brother and sisters, began in high school.

Twelve-year-old Zhymir Thompson's eyes light up when he talks about how much he loves math.

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The Citadel snapped an 11-game losing streak with a 48-46 victory over Chattanooga tonight at McKenzie Arena in Chattanooga, Tenn.

Outfielder Tyler Griffin was 3 for 3 and drove in three runs as The Citadel baseball team earned its first victory of the season by 10-7 over Richmond today in The Citadel Memorial Challenge at Riley Park.

Marshall Harris III converted the go-ahead 3-pointer with less than two minutes to go as The Citadel ended a 13-game road losing streak with a 48-46 victory at Chattanooga on Saturday evening.

Senior Nick Orvin and sophomore Tyler Griffin each recorded three hits as The Citadel pushed across 10 runs over the first four innings and held on for a 10-7 victory over Richmond Saturday afternoon in The Citadel Memorial Challenge presented by the Charleston Crab House at Riley Park. The win snaps the Bulldogs' 13-game losing streak dating back to last season. The Citadel will face Liberty Sunday afternoon at 2 p.m. to close out the season-opening tournament.

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Twelve-year-old Zhymir Thompson's eyes light up when he talks about how much he loves math.

Mike Groselle notched a team-high 17 points to go along with 10 rebounds and Lawrence Miller added 14 points off the bench, but The Citadel was unable to match Western Carolina's offensive firepower, who emerged with a 70-53 victory at the Ramsey Center on Thursday evening.

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Freshman SS Bailey Rush went 3-for-3 in his collegiate debut and sophomore 3B Drew DeKerlegand had a pair of doubles, but The Citadel was unable to overcome a 5-0 deficit and fell 6-5 to Towson University in the 2012 baseball season opener at The Citadel Memorial Challenge presented by the Charleston Crab House Friday night at Riley Park. The Bulldogs return to action Saturday afternoon as they host Richmond at 1:00 p.m.

MOUNT PLEASANT – Bulldog Battle IX, a youth wrestling event hosted by The Citadel Old Timer’s Club, will be held Saturday aboard the Yorktown, located at Patriots Point.

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Wando, Academic Magnet, Bishop England, Porter-Gaud, and Socastee faced off last Saturday with a series of preseason lacrosse scrimmages at The Citadel's Johnson Hagood Stadium in a format similar to the Sertoma Football Classic.

He's called a thug, a marauder and a thief. Is he a bandit, woodsman or a hero soldier out of work? For Citadel professors Kelly DeVries and Michael Livingston, the question should be "What is Robin Hood?"

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The College of Charleston sailing team opened the spring season with a three-point victory at the SAISA Open over the weekend in St. Petersburg, Fla.

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Citadel freshmen Ashton Moore scored a game-high 24 points and Jordan Robertson added a career-high 10 rebounds, but it was an Georgia Southern's Willie Powers that made the difference in the Eagles 73-72 overtime victory at McAlister Field House on Saturday evening.

MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C. A forum on the accomplishments and struggles of black veterans is scheduled for the USS Yorktown as part of Black History Month.  The event is set for Friday aboard the World War II-era aircraft carrier at the Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum on Charleston Harbor.  Also speaking is Marcus Cox, the founding director of the African American studies program at The Citadel.

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Davidson basketball coach Bob McKillop was the picture of buttoned-up cool for most of the Wildcats' 77-66 win over The Citadel on Thursday night, keeping his suit coat on and tie knotted perfectly.  And why not?  His Wildcats, alone atop the Southern Conference, built a 22-point lead in the first half and led comfortably by 18 with just seven minutes left in the game.

CHARLESTON, S.C. -- De'Mon Brooks scored a career-high 26 points as Davidson beat The Citadel 77-66 Thursday night in Southern Conference play.  Brooks, who had nine rebounds and four steals, hit 8 of 9 field goal attempts and also sank eight free throws.

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His accent is unmistakable, his tongue as sharp as ever, his towering presence undiminished by age.  Fritz Hollings still has it. The former U.S. senator and South Carolina governor made a rare public appearance Thursday, attending an Exchange Club of Charleston luncheon where he was honored with the club's "Book of Golden Deeds" -- only the 29th time in the club's history it has given out this public service award.

Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum will offer a free symposium at noon Friday in recognition of Black History Month.  The 90-minute event, "Hometown Heroes: The Struggles and Accomplishments of Black Veterans," will be held aboard the aircraft carrier Yorktown in the Smokey Stover Theater. A panel discussion will follow with remarks by... and Marcus Cox, local author, associate professor of history and director of African-American studies at The Citadel... The event is free, but parking is $5.

Citadel basketball coach Chuck Driesell started three freshmen in the Bulldogs’ last game, and will stick with that lineup when Southern Conference-leading Davidson comes to McAlister Field House tonight.  The Bulldogs (4-19, 1-11 SoCon) started freshmen Lawrence Miller, Marshall Harris and Jordan Robertson alongside juniors Mike Groselle and Bo Holston in a 71-66 loss at Elon on Saturday, the Bulldogs’ eighth straight defeat.

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The College of Charleston was picked by the coaches while Georgia Southern was the choice of the media to win the 2012 Southern Conference baseball championship it was announced Wednesday.  The Cougars were picked by six of the 11 coaches and finished with 93 points, one point ahead of the Eagles. Samford got the other first-place vote and was picked to finish third with 83 points. The Citadel was picked eighth with 33 points.

Boiling Springs, N.C. - The Gardner-Webb wrestling team will return to action this weekend, as the Runnin' Bulldog grapplers will host The Citadel on Friday night at 6 p.m. and the Hoosiers of Indiana on Sunday night at 7 p.m. in Paul Porter Arena.

SPRINGFIELD — Springfield High School’s new head football coach doesn’t lack experience. He has served as the head coach at four different schools, most recently Richmond (Ind.), and as an assistant at three others.  Eric Gillespie will be recommended to the school board tonight by Superintendent David Estrop. Gillespie is a 1983 Stebbins High School graduate who lettered as a defensive back at The Citadel, a military college in South Carolina, for three seasons.

Citadel center Mike Groselle finished with 15 points and 11 rebounds, but visiting Davidson came away with the 77-66 Southern Conference victory on Thursday evening at McAlister Field House.

In October, Romney addressed military cadets at The Citadel in South Carolina, invoking President Reagan and offering a biblical justification for American exceptionalism.  “God did not create this country to be a nation of followers,” Romney said. “America is not destined to be one of several equally balanced global powers.”

Click on the thumbnail to view the TV clip.

Imagine a drinking straw stuck to the wall at a 90-degree angle, 33 feet away. The goal: Shoot a pellet down the middle of that straw.
The catch: For a perfect score, the pellet cannot touch the straw.  "It's not as easy as it sounds," chuckles William Smith, coach of The Citadel's rifle team.

CHARLESTON, SC - The College of Charleston Cougars were tabbed as the top baseball team in the Southern Conference by a vote of the league's coaches, the conference office announced on Wednesday. 

The College of Charleston was picked by the coaches while Georgia Southern was the choice of the media to win the 2012 Southern Conference baseball championship announced Wednesday.  The Cougars were picked by six of the 11 coaches and finished with 93 points, one point ahead of the Eagles.  The Citadel was picked eighth, receiving 33 points. .

Click on the thumbnail to view the TV clip.

Four College of Charleston players and two Citadel players have been named to the Southern Conference preseason all-conference team as selected by the league’s coaches.

Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum will offer a free symposium at noon Friday in recognition of Black History Month.  Entitled 'Hometown Heroes: The Struggles and Accomplishments of Black Veterans,' the event will be held aboard the World War II-era aircraft carrier Yorktown in the Smokey Stover Theater... a panel discussion will follow with remarks by... and Marcus Cox, local author, associate professor of history and founding director of African-American studies at The Citadel.

CHARLESTON, SC -Sophomore infielder Drew DeKerlegand was selected to the Southern Conference preseason all-conference first team as announced by the league office Wednesday morning. Senior outfielder Nick Orvin was chosen to the all-conference second team, as voted on by the league's 11 head coaches. The Citadel was picked to finish eighth in both the coaches' and media preseason polls.

Cadet Taylor Marshall Fisher of Cheraw was recently honored for outstanding academic achievement at The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, during the fall semester of the 2011-2012 academic year. Fisher earned one of the college’s top academic honors, a Gold Star.

Citadel cadets named to the Commandant’s List are recognized for having made the most positive contributions to their platoon, company, battalion, or staff, the South Carolina Corps of Cadets and The Citadel.

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Some cadets at the storied Virginia Military Institute are outraged over a series of caustic personal attacks posted to a photo-caption Web site and directed at female students, minorities and college administrators.  The posts are on the site quickmeme and appear to target several VMI cadets, as well as top brass. The site’s format allows users to create captions within portrait photos, much like the formula of lolcats, except that many of these captions are vulgar and personal.

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FORT KNOX, Ky. -- The Army's Cadet Command announces the eight winners of the MacArthur Awards for the school year 2010-2011. The award recognizes the eight schools, selected from among the 273 senior Army Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) nationwide, as the top Army ROTC programs in the country.

Cadet Command and the MacArthur Foundation have given the awards annually since 1989.
The eight winners are:

The Citadel (Charleston, S.C.) represents Cadet Command's 1st Brigade, which consists of the nation's six senior military colleges and five of the military junior colleges.

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College of Charleston men’s basketball coach Bobby Cremins will address later today the health issues that forced him to take a medical leave of absence from the program on Jan. 26.

Cremins, 64, has been with the school six seasons but on Jan. 27 announced he was stepping away to work on a non-life threatening medical condition.

Political analyst Michael Barone will deliver the fourth lecture in the Conservative Intellectual Tradition seminar, a cutting-edge new course being offered at The Citadel this spring to explore the evolution of the conservative movement. 

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TV clips from The Citadel's Black History Month bazaar held Saturday, 4 Feb 2012.

Lawrence Miller scored a team-high 15 points, keyed by five 3-pointers, and Mike Groselle added 14 points but it was Elon that emerged with the 71-66 victory in a tightly contested Southern Conference hardwoods battle on Saturday evening. Miller, who recorded back-to-back double figure games for the first time in his collegiate career, reached the milestone in his second career start. The Phoenix were led by the offensive efforts of Jack Isenbarger and Lucas Troutman, who finished with 34 and 14 points, respectively.

A Charleston businessman connected to a SLED investigation into an alleged “pay-to-play” scheme involving the state’s $25 billion pension system said Thursday that he was acting as an unpaid adviser to State Treasurer Curtis Loftis.  But Mallory Factor said he did not tell Loftis who to hire to help manage the retirement fund.

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The Charleston financial consultant whose involvement with the state retirement commission is being questioned said Thursday he is the "collateral damage" of a smear campaign against the state treasurer. Mallory Factor is part of a State Law Enforcement Division investigation into what the Attorney General's Office has called a possible "pay to play" scheme. He is scheduled to be interviewed by SLED agents today.

UNC Greensboro didn't need a buzzer-beating slam dunk for this victory over The Citadel's basketball team.  UNCG sent the Bulldogs to their seventh straight loss with a more routine 82-71 win Thursday night at the Greensboro Coliseum in Greensboro, N.C. Trevis Simpson, the dunking hero of the Spartans' 67-66 win at The Citadel on Jan. 14, scored 23 points to lead resurgent UNCG to its seventh straight victory.

COLUMBIA — Everette Sands offered his sales pitch to the headmaster at Sea Island Academy, who was looking to buy some new computers for the school. Sands didn’t mind selling computers, since he was a computer science major at The Citadel. You could make good money with that degree in the mid-1990s.

A Charleston businessman connected to a State Law Enforcement Division investigation into an alleged "pay-to-play" scheme involving the state's $25 billion pension system said Thursday that he was acting as an unpaid advisor to state Treasurer Curtis Loftis. But Mallory Factor said he did not tell Loftis who to hire to help manage the retirement fund.

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The Citadel will celebrate Black History Month with several events highlighting the importance of public service as well as maintaining communities.  The annual Black History Month Bazaar will be 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Feb. 4 in Buyer Auditorium on the second floor of Mark Clark Hall. The bazaar will include music, exhibits and food.

By the time Christmas came around, Citadel football coach Kevin Higgins had a good feeling about this recruiting class. The Citadel had 11 verbal commitments by Dec. 25, a big number for the Bulldogs, and wound up signing 29 players to national letters of intent Wednesday. Twenty-two of those are scholarship players, with seven walk-ons.

Robert Hood, a lawyer in private practice in Columbia, won election to a circuit court judgeship in the state's 5th Judicial Circuit on Wednesday.  Hood, 36, beat out former 5th Circuit Deputy Solicitor John Meadors, 50, for the post that pays $130,312 a year. In the joint House-Senate vote, Hood outpaced Meadors in a 82-67 vote. Twenty-one lawmakers did not vote.  Hood is a 1994 Citadel graduate and a 2001 USC law school graduate.

A day after losing the Florida primary to Mitt Romney, the former House speaker took time to honor a commitment to the school, speaking on the "DNA" of the nation's beginnings for a room of about 25 cadets and guests. His lesson lasted for more than an hour, beamed in from the next battleground state of Nevada.

The combination of Citadel scorers Mike Groselle (20 pts.) and Lawrence Miller (15 pts.) led the way for the Bulldogs, who suffered a difficult 82-71 loss at UNC Greensboro in Southern Conference action on Thursday evening.

Charleston political operative and financial consultant is ensnared in an alleged “pay-to-play” scandal involving the commission that handles state pension investments.  Mallory Factor, also a professor of American government at The Citadel, is part of a State Law Enforcement Division investigation, a SLED spokeswoman confirmed late Wednesday.

who is he: President of Mallory Factor Inc., an independent merchant bank and financial relations consultancy that he founded in 1976.

his circles: In New York, Factor ran an invitation-only "Monday Meeting" that brought together wealthy people and high-finance players in business and politics. After moving to Charleston, he began a new invitation-only, off-the-record meeting that draws from players in state and national politics and finance.

Publicity: Has written columns for Forbes, The Wall Street Journal and The Post and Courier, and made frequent appearances on Fox News.

teaching: In May, Factor was named The Citadel's 2011-12 John C. West Professor of International Politics and American Government.

The Citadel will celebrate Black History Month with several events highlighting the importance of public service as well as maintaining communities. The featured event will be the keynote address by state Rep. Bakari Sellers, the youngest black elected official in the country.

The Citadel at UNC Greensboro

WHEN: 7 p.m. WHERE: Greensboro Coliseum, Greensboro, N.C.

RADIO: WQNT 1450-AM. LINE: UNCG by 10

RECORDS: The Citadel 4-17, 1-9 Southern Conference; UNCG 8-14, 6-4

NOTES: The Citadel has lost six in a row, the latest a 67-58 loss to Furman on Saturday. The skid includes a 67-66 home loss to UNCG on Trevis Simpson’s dunk with 0.2 seconds left, in a game that included two lead changes and three possessions in the final second ... Citadel C Mike Groselle, who has a SoCon-high 11 double-doubles, leads the SoCon in scoring (17.3 ppg) and rebounding (9.6) and is third in field-goal percentage (58.7). He also leads the league with 11 double-doubles ... UNCG has won six straight, the last two in overtime vs. Appalachian State and Western Carolina ... A team that lost 11 in a row and replaced coach Mike Dement with interim coach Wes Miller is now in first place in the SoCon North ... Guard Derrell Armstrong had 26.5 ppg over the last four games, and backcourt mate Simpson averages 16.7 points, scoring 26 in the win over WCU.

SUMMERVILLE, SC (WCSC) -

Thirteen student-athletes signed national letters of intent at Ashley Ridge High School on Wednesday as part of National Signing Day.

The Patriots also have two girls who will sign soccer scholarships. Taylor Simmons is headed for USC Aiken, and Rachel Nobbs will play at Lees-McRae College in Banner Elk, N.C.  Pinewood Prep girls soccer standouts Courtney Angotti-Smith and Taylor Darling will sign with USC and The Citadel, respectively.

Oak Creek High School graduate Jacob Pues received two high honors from The Citadel when he was named to the fall 2011 President's List and the Commandant's Distinguished Service List.  The President's List, which indicates excellence in academics and military duties, is the most distinguished awards list on which a cadet can be placed, according to a news release.

Other football signees are: Rock Hill's Mitchell Jeter (The Citadel); South Pointe's Tay Hicklin, Corey Neely, Montay Crockett (Georgia Southern) and JaRyan Jennings (Newberry); York's Andre Foulks (Wingate); Lancaster's Shaquille Williams (Hutchinson Community College), Shaquille Elder (Feather River Community College, Quincy, Calif.) and Key Anthony Foster (Orangeburg Calhoun Tech Prep Academy); and Indian Land's Rondreas Truesdale (Delta State).

Cadet Grace Catherine Raines of Lilburn earned a Gold Star at was recently The Citadel, The Military College of South Carolina, during the fall semester of the 2011-2012 academic year. The Gold Star is one of the college's top academic honors, a Gold Star. Raines is seeking a bachelor's degree is Biology.

Pinewood Preparatory School held their first athletic signings of the year on Wednesday. Two senior soccer players Courtney Angotti-Smith and Taylor Darling signed their National Letters of Intent to play soccer at The University of South Carolina and The Citadel, respectively.

NORTH AUGUSTA -- Dan Pippin isn't necessarily done with this year's football signings from North Augusta High School, but the football coach made another major statement Wednesday, when four players put their names on the line.  Vinny Miller, the 2011Aiken Standard Offensive Player of the Year, confirmed his plans to play for The Citadel, looking to build on the momentum that he established as a spectacularly successful running back for Pippin.

With the season barely over and spring practice just around the corner, Wednesday is a big day for college football. National Signing Day is here.

The Citadel Head Coach Kevin Higgins has announced the addition of 29 new football players who will join the Bulldog program in the fall.